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I work as an election official in Georgia. Let me start there.

You are exactly right - it is disgusting that NO ONE got anything worse than a reprimand in their file. THAT ALONE is criminal.

Please see my rant below.

The rules and procedures *AND* the electronic equipment used in an election are *NOT* hard to execute, and the equipment is really just iPads, large Android tablets, HP laser printers, and scanners with cash register-type printers.

You plug it in, turn it on, confirm or set date and time, and the stuff just works. (note well it takes a manager-only passcode and a separate physical key, kinda like missile keys to boot and/or shutdown/close) Been there and done that. Sure there might be a bad charger for an iPad or a missing cord for an Android, but ... It. Ain’t. Hard. If something weird happens you can call the County or the SoS office. And yes, they DO answer the calls.

Also keep in mind most of the workers are retirees - true senior citizens. Not 20 something tech wizards. VERY FEW of the staff are technically adept. I am, but I retired from a career in technology. The stuff and the processes has to be simple and straightforward.

In our county (Hall) we run a tight ship and STRICTLY follow all the rules and procedures, especially those for the ICPs (the scanners or tabulators).

At the beginning of election day you MUST check the zero on the tabulator and print the zero tape. A minimum of three people sign off on the tape.

When a ballot is scanned the image AND THE VOTE by line item DETAIL and TOTALS are loaded onto TWO solid state large format memory chips. (they’re big enough to look like laptop hard drives). Also EVERY paper ballot scanned goes into a big locked bin in the bottom of the scanner.

At the end of the day when the polls close we go through a process where the polls are officially closed on the ICP to shut down the tabulator for the election. NO data can be added at this point.
1. two identical sets of tapes (like a CVS receipt only FAR longer) are printed off the tabulator SHOWING THE VOTING RESULTS AND TOTALS BY LINE ITEM on that machine. One set of tapes is taped to the front (locked) door of the polls so it is visible to the public from the outside. The other matching printout is turned in with all our paperwork. So yes, within maybe 30 minutes of poll close we know quantitatively what ALL the results were at our precinct. So can the public. Candidates and candidates’ reps often visit EVERY poll location to see results and call them in to their own offices.

2. ONE of the memory chips is sealed up with all the tapes, ballots and records from the check-in iPads and the totals from the BMDs - the screen where you mark and print your ballot. The numbers from the check-ins, BMDs and the tabulators (total voters and votes) **MUST MATCH** or we cannot go home. [We conduct hourly audits to make sure we stay lined up and seldom have an issue end of day]

3. EVERY piece of equipment is turned off and a seal or seals attached and the numbers recorded. The equipment is loaded up, locked in SEALED cases and placed on special carts provided by the county and covered for transport - by us. ALL those seal numbers are recorded and turned in with all the other election data/paperwork.

3.5 ALL the paperwork is signed off on by the poll manager, asst mgr(s) and sometimes certain ‘leads.’ ALL signatories are held liable. We swear an oath to that, and are aware it’s a FELONY to falsify data.

4. The poll manager with an assistant manager(s) take all the records, the signed tapes (one copy), the memory card in a SINGLE vehicle DIRECTLY to the county election office. Their vehicle is tailed by a uniformed deputy in a marked vehicle.

At the County offices they log it all in. They upload the data from the memory chips and check it against the tapes. Again confirming a match. At this point the precinct results go to the web. 100% of precincts reporting mean that everyone has made it to the county office and their records were clean.

**DONE CORRECTLY** it’s really hard to cheat in a GA election.
Your hourly totals have to match your daily totals.
Your daily totals have to match your machine totals
Your machine totals have to match your paper tape totals.

The fact that Fulton County CANNOT or DID NOT produce the above to **ME** is straight up evidence the results from those precincts should NOT have been accepted by the GA SOS. Period.

**AND** the people responsible should have been prosecuted. Instead, they got reprimands in their files. THAT TOO is criminal.